More joblosses forecasted....

MidlandsM

http://www.irishexaminer.com/business/franchised-car-dealerships-set-to-fall-by-115-186144.html

Franchised car dealerships set to fall by 115

By Aoife Dowling
Tuesday, March 06, 2012






The number of franchised car dealers in Ireland will fall by 115 in the next four years, according to a major report on the Irish motor industry.
The report was carried out by Saleslynx, an automotive research, consultancy and training provider, and predicts that the number of franchised dealers will fall from 490 to 375 or less by 2016.

Most of the closures will likely happen in the next two years, according to the report.

Saleslynx said that dealer numbers have already fallen by 110 since 2006, but will likely see a further dramatic decline in the coming years.

According to the report a car dealer is unsustainable below 300 sales per year. However, the average new car sales per dealer totalled just 183 last year.

Although the report found that the new car market is set to grow from 80,000 this year to 112,000 in 2016, Saleslynx said that the increase is too low and too slow to restore profitability.

Report author Brian Milsted noted that the amount of available service work is declining and thus won’t be enough to offset falling sales.

"Another problem is that the supply of used cars for dealers to retail is constrained by weak new car sales volume. The combination of these factors means the number of dealerships will have to fall."

Mr Milsted said some dealers will leave the industry voluntarily or through business failures.

"Many will also be culled as vehicle manufacturers use new European Block Exemption regulations, effective from May 31, 2013, to reshape and reposition their dealer networks," he added.

The days of the private importer also appear numbered. According to the report, manufacturers are continually taking over their retail distribution in Ireland. In 2006, 56% of the passenger cars and LCVs sold in Ireland were distributed through private importers, while last year it was just 33%.

However, the report indicates that a move towards more manufacturer-owned dealerships and more manufacturer-supported dealerships is under way.

Anan1

There's certainly still scope for trimming - as far as I can see standards of customer care are in many cases no better than they were during the boom.

johnos1984

Anan1 wrote: »

There's certainly still scope for trimming - as far as I can see standards of customer care are in many cases no better than they were during the boom.

Can't argue with that.

I bloody hate giving out my number and never getting a call back.

Think about it, a cash paying customer with no bloody trade in they should be snapping my hand off........or so I thought anyway.

BTW if anyone in the trade wants to swallow their pride and actually take the time to PM me asking what I want I'd be happy to talk.......It'll never happen though as they bloody well ignore you when your in the showroom for fearing of the customer thinking they are desperate to sell :rolleyes:

Nothing impresses more than enthusiasm for a sale in my mind

Marcusm

johnos1984 wrote: »

Can't argue with that.

I bloody hate giving out my number and never getting a call back.

Think about it, a cash paying customer with no bloody trade in they should be snapping my hand off........or so I thought anyway.

BTW if anyone in the trade wants to swallow their pride and actually take the time to PM me asking what I want I'd be happy to talk.......It'll never happen though as they bloody well ignore you when your in the showroom for fearing of the customer thinking they are desperate to sell :rolleyes:

Nothing impresses more than enthusiasm for a sale in my mind

And as was proved this weekend, you'll buy any old bag of sh1te .:p;):cool:

johnos1984

Marcusm wrote: »

And as was proved this weekend, you'll buy any old bag of sh1te .:p;):cool:

The Mazda was free

Nissan doctor

Our place is hiring anyway so its not all doom and gloom in the industry.:)

johnos1984

Nissan doctor wrote: »

Our place is hiring anyway so its not all doom and gloom in the industry.:)

Yes but you don't work in a Main Stealer......btw that Sunny and Sentra looked mint I forgot to ask about them

Saab Ed

johnos1984 wrote: »

Yes but you don't work in a Main Stealer

I was all ready to PM you till that biased post. Dont fancy the argument now. One wonders is that a common theme!

Nissan doctor

johnos1984 wrote: »

Yes but you don't work in a Main Stealer......btw that Sunny and Sentra looked mint I forgot to ask about them

They are tidy alright. The Sentra was a barn find....50k from new, we've rebuilt the engine and done some tidying.

The Sunny is a 1 owner car with not so much as a mark on the body work.

johnos1984

Saab Ed wrote: »

I was all ready to PM you till that biased post. Dont fancy the argument now. One wonders is that a common theme!

That was a joke Saab Ed.

And to be fair main dealers are for the most part more expensive for servicing. I'm not saying all are and to be honest the argument has been done here many times. And as for it being biased what do you expect. I've been to loads of main dealers in the past two weeks and can only count on a hand the amount that would be worth returning too. I can only go on my recent experience of car shopping but your more than welcome to change that

Guy:Incognito

Nissan doctor wrote: »

Our place is hiring anyway so its not all doom and gloom in the industry.:)

Hireing what? Not first year mechanics by any chance?

Marcusm

johnos1984 wrote: »

The Mazda was free

I was referring to the Vee Dub Pass the hat (which is what you should be doing for all the entertainment it has brought)!

Nissan doctor

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Hireing what? Not first year mechanics by any chance?

Hireing mechanics anyway. No limits on who can apply....lots of limits on who will be hired though:P

Guy:Incognito

Nissan doctor wrote: »

Hireing mechanics anyway. No limits on who can apply....lots of limits on who will be hired though:P

Is it advertised anywhere? Just had a look on the site and didnt see anything.

I'm the right man for the job if that helps.

ltdslipdiff

johnos1984 wrote: »

That was a joke Saab Ed.

And to be fair main dealers are for the most part more expensive for servicing. I'm not saying all are and to be honest the argument has been done here many times. And as for it being biased what do you expect. I've been to loads of main dealers in the past two weeks and can only count on a hand the amount that would be worth returning too. I can only go on my recent experience of car shopping but your more than welcome to change that

I'd like to throw in the hat for a shot at the title if Saab Ed has nothing to suit. I'm always ready to deal at a price we're both happy at

johnos1984

Marcusm wrote: »

I was referring to the Vee Dub Pass the hat (which is what you should be doing for all the entertainment it has brought)!

Errrr yes that has been rather expensive

johnos1984

As said if someone wants to PM me I'm happy to talk and see what we can do

Hellrazer

We`ve taken on staff aswell this year and not 1st year apprentices.

Things are tough this year--Id say its by far the worst year of the recession so far for main dealers.

The best part of it being this quiet lot is that if you shop around you`ll get a good deal as dealers have offers all over the place on both servicing and sales and personally in my role Ive been instructed to get the parts sales up no matter what discounts I have to give and Im told its the same all over the trade.

Nissan doctor

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Is it advertised anywhere? Just had a look on the site and didnt see anything.

I'm the right man for the job if that helps.

Are you qualified or looking for an apprenticeship?

Its only qualified people that we're looking for atm.

Drummerboy08

As someone who works in the trade, I can see it coming a mile away.

If the Government go fiddling with the tax system again, it'll be July 2008 all over again.

Slightly OT, Brian Milsted is a top guy, I've attended many a training course with him, think my oul fella did years ago too.

Guy:Incognito

Nissan doctor wrote: »

Are you qualified or looking for an apprenticeship?

Its only qualified people that we're looking for atm.

Only looking to start unfortunately. Went the worng road a few years ago into the family business and became a Plumber. Never took to it. Only in it long enough to get qualified (12 more weeks, yay)

Guy:Incognito

Drummerboy08 wrote: »

As someone who works in the trade, I can see it coming a mile away.

If the Government go fiddling with the tax system again, it'll be July 2008 all over again.

Slightly OT, Brian Milsted is a top guy, I've attended many a training course with him, think my oul fella did years ago too.

From a casual observers point of view there there does seem to be an oversupply of main dealers for plenty of marques. Dublin could probably survive with 2 , maybe 3 at a push or a particular make.

Anywhoo, cant imagine them all just shutting up shop, surely a good few willl stay open as independants?

Drummerboy08

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

From a casual observers point of view there there does seem to be an oversupply of main dealers for plenty of marques. Dublin could probably survive with 2 , maybe 3 at a push or a particular make.

Anywhoo, cant imagine them all just shutting up shop, surely a good few willl stay open as independants?

The over supply issue is not down to the dealers, more so down to the distributors. In saying that, certain brands have renewed their dealerships over the past few years, Audi and VW in particular.

Can't see too many staying open as indy's, look at Maxwells as an example. They lost the BMW franchise, tried to make a stab at it, but couldn't make it work.

I'm personally very busy at the minute, I haven't stopped since coming back after Christmas. I've a few friends in other parts of the country though who are sitting on their hole all day, nothing happening.

johnos1984

I've found that drummerboy.

Your either rushed off your feet or gathering dust. There seems to be very little in between with dealers at the minute

Drummerboy08

johnos1984 wrote: »

I've found that drummerboy.

Your either rushed off your feet or gathering dust. There seems to be very little in between with dealers at the minute

I'm at the point where I had to put off days I had booked off because I've too much stuff to get through.

Other guys are ringing me with tales of tumbleweeds floating around the showroom....

I really hope that the Gubberment don't start messing with the tax system again though. On a serious note, it will risk an awful lot of jobs. Say what you want about the motor Industry in Ireland, you can't deny it does supply alot of jobs.

We're just getting back on our feet after 2008, and it's taken 4 years to do so. To go messing with it again is madness, and will only end up costing the taxpayer more money than actually bringing in extra revenue on motor tax.

Saab Ed

Drummerboy08 wrote: »

I'm personally very busy at the minute, I haven't stopped since coming back after Christmas. I've a few friends in other parts of the country though who are sitting on their hole all day, nothing happening.

+1

I've been up to my eyeballs since January too but I cant see much happening after Easter tbh. Me thinks its gonna be a long summer what with the Euros coming up aswell. I fully expect July and August to be a horror show. Lets hope the hire drives cover us till Christmas, then we can deal with the brewing fiasco that is the 13 plate.

johnos1984

Saab Ed wrote: »

then we can deal with the brewing fiasco that is the 13 plate.

Is that really going to be a problem?

Drummerboy08

Saab Ed wrote: »

+1

I've been up to my eyeballs since January too but I cant see much happening after Easter tbh. Me thinks its gonna be a long summer what with the Euros coming up aswell. I fully expect July and August to be a horror show. Lets hope the hire drives cover us till Christmas, then we can deal with the brewing fiasco that is the 13 plate.

Yeah, I think after the first quarter things are going to slow down dramatically on the retail side.

This added to the fact that there is very, very little second hand stock floating around is going to make it very hard.

However, there are still finance houses willing to lend out there, and there are certainly people with money still looking to buy.

I was at Merlin Auctions last week, a 08 TDV8 RR Sport with a nasty bodykit sold for 42k plus fees. I nearly went looking for him with a business card........;):D

Guy:Incognito

johnos1984 wrote: »

Is that really going to be a problem?

Never underestimate the stupidity of the public at large.

Nissan doctor

I'm not sure what the company as a whole is up but my Garage is up 30% on last year and later evenings are starting to become all too common.

You'd have to wonder about some garages, dealers or otherwise, that have no work...it is actually because there isn't any customers or is it, as I think, that people are shopping around more for the best value and quality of work and these places simply don't provide it?

Having said that, I'm well aware that vehicle servicing is being affected very differently then vehicle sales.

johnos1984

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Never underestimate the stupidity of the public at large.

This is true

And Drummerboy is right, there is very little good used stock knocking about the place

Drummerboy08

Nissan doctor wrote: »

I'm not sure what the company as a whole is up but my Garage is up 30% on last year and later evenings are starting to become all too common.

You'd have to wonder about some garages, dealers or otherwise, that have no work...it is actually because there isn't any customers or is it, as I think, that people are shopping around more for the best value and quality of work and these places simply don't provide it?

Having said that, I'm well aware that vehicle servicing is being affected very differently then vehicle sales.

From a service point of view, it's obviously got to do with the level of service being offered by certain outlets. I also think it's got something to do with the perceived level of value in certain places, or the lack of in others i.e. people think that getting their Polo serviced in a VW garage will cost the planet, and as such they don't even price it up.

From a sales point of view, most of the time it's down to who offers the best price and service rarely comes into it.

I think the service side of things has actually had the benefit of the whole recession thing. People stop buying new cars, and instead spend a few bob getting their car looked after.